1 Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) The Journal of the Royal Signals Institution VOL XXIX WINTER 2010 NO 2 This special 90th Anniversary edition of the Journal comes at the end of another busy year, which saw the continuation of our popular workshops for MOD, Government and industry, as well as a very successful Seminar in October and the London Lecture and Dinner in November. The latter saw a capacity audience assembled to hear the address by Mr Andrew Manley, the Director, Defence Commercial. In between, the Blandford Lecture programme has been well supported, and attracted guest speakers of the calibre of Professor Richard Aldritch, Brigadier Allan Mallinson and Kate Adie. In this edition, we reprint some interesting articles from earlier editions of the Journal and its predecessor, the Royal Signals Quarterly Journal, which have some resonance with present times. Our technical section features an article on FALCON deployed on Op Herrick, and a special article exposing the relative merits of the Defence Information Infrastructure, of interest to many. The popular historical section includes an account of the Ashanti Expedition from one of noted contributors, and an account of the retiral from service of the Ptarmigan communication system. The next issue of the Journal is planned for Spring 2011; I look forward to receiving your articles! Tom Moncur Contents THE ROYAL SIGNALS INSTITUTION Corps Pipes and Drums Corps 90th Anniversary Message SSgt (PM) Jimmy Scott................................................. Master of Signals.......................................................... The Hellespont Swim The Royal Signals Institution London Lecture Colonel Alan Blackwell................................................ Mr Andrew Manley....................................................... Indian Corps of Signals Centenary The Distinguished Officers Board RMAS................... Colonel (Retired) Tom Moncur...................................... Royal Signals Blandford Lectures............................... HISTORICAL THE WAY WE WERE The Ashanti Expedition Contributions Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) David Mullineaux.......... Editor, The Royal Signals Quarterly Journal 1948....... Ptarmigan Retires Telephone at the Front Colonel (Retired) Tom Moncur...................................... Captain Norman Davey RE, Punch Magazine 1915.... EWB Gill - Taking Wireless to War The Leader and the Led Dr Brian Austin.............................................................. Major AR Wythe, RSI Journal 1956.............................. A Ratty Story CORRESPONDENCE Brigadier ES Cole, Egypt 1932.................................... Multi-level Security Major (Retired) David Williams.................................... TECHNOLOGY Engineering Training FALCON on Op Herrick Major (Retired) Roger Castle-Smith............................. By Lieutenant Colonel Simon Purser and Rob Salter.. Sandpiper takes Flight REMEMBRANCE WO2 (FofS) Andrew Dobson........................................ Major General Peter Bradley........................................ The Defence Information Infrastructure Colonel Peter Innocent.................................................. Lieutenant Colonel Richard Giles................................ Brigadier Graeme Jackson............................................ Spectrum in the Early 21st Century Colonel Gordon Munro.................................................. Major Paul Flavell....................................................... SVELTE BOOK REVIEWS Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Dr Richard Skaife.......... Tony Blair - A Journey................................................... Leading from the Front................................................... INTEREST AFCEA Technet International 2010 Captain Muz Murray.................................................... Authors alone are responsible for the contents of their articles. The opinions expressed in the articles are those of the authors and do not reflect necessarily the policy and views, official or otherwise, of the Royal Corps of Signals or the Ministry of Defence. This publication should be treated with discretion by the recipient. © Crown Copyright Disclaimer: No responsibility for the quality of goods or services advertised in this magazine can be accepted by the Publishers or Advertising Agents. Advertisements are included in ‘good faith’.Printed by Holbrooks Printers Ltd, Hilsea, Portsmouth PO3 5HX 81 Create PDF files without this message by purchasing novaPDF printer (http://www.novapdf.com) A 90TH ANNIVERSARY MESSAGE FROM THE MASTER OF SIGNALS Lieutenant General (Retired) Robert Baxter CBE DSc FIET FBCS CITP As I write, the date is 1 September 2010, or 140 years to the day that C Troop, Royal Engineers was formed at Chatham. You will know that this grew over the years to become, successively, the Telegraph Battalion, the Royal Engineers Signals Service and eventually the Royal Corps of Signals in 1920. The Royal Warrant was signed by the Secretary of State for War, the Rt Hon Winston S Churchill, on 28 June 1920 and six weeks later His Majesty the King conferred the title Royal Corps of Signals. Over the next 20 years, the Corps was to serve in many outposts of the Empire such as Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Egypt, and by the end of World War II had grown to 8,518 officers and 142,472 soldiers. Post-War, we continued to be involved in many campaigns, including Palestine, Malaya, Korea, Cyprus, Borneo, Aden, Kenya and Belize. Throughout the Cold War we maintained a substantial presence in Germany, whilst supporting operations in Northern Ireland and the Falkland Islands. The fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 brought little let-up in activity, with peace-keeping operations in the Lebanon and Namibia, as well as support to operations in East Timor, Kurdistan, Bosnia, Croatia, Kosovo, Western Sahara, Cambodia, Rwanda, Angola, Zaire and Sierra Leone. The Corps had a major involvement in the first and second Gulf Wars, and we remain heavily committed to operations in Afghanistan, with troops still stationed in Germany, Cyprus and the Falkland Islands. At present, the Strategic Defence and Security Review is firmly in the headlines, and the Defence Training Review will have a major impact on how we train our young servicemen and women. The one certainty is that there will be change and I trust that this holds no fears for members of a Corps that was formed in response to new technologies and has changed in response to changes in those technologies as well as to the nature of military operations. Our fundamental role is to support commanders wherever they are, at all levels of command and across the full range of operations from Military Aid to the Civil Authorities to highly intense counter-insurgency: hence the term Command Support is used. Some of you will have noticed how over time some of the tasks and equipment, once the preserve of special forces, have migrated into the ‘green’ Army and you will also be aware of just how far forward you find the Corps in support of special forces. The Corps can only add value by understanding both the technology and the requirements of operations as well as the demands of command; only with this dual understanding can the potential of technology be fully exploited. In addition, our lead in electronic warfare adds tremendous value in delivering robust and assured communications and information systems – working as a ‘poacher’ gives precious insight to the ‘gamekeeper’. Cyber warfare is merely an extension, albeit a complex one, of this activity and any failure on the part of the Corps to understand and grip this will mean that we fail in our primary role. We must be active and not just reactive, spotting both the need and being ready with the solution. This requires us to be fully in the mind of the commander and his key staff. Field Marshal Alexander of Tunis offered this advice in his Foreword to a history of the Corps: ‘Good signal communications will not be forthcoming unless signal officers can merit the full confidence and trust of their commanders. Such trust implies that commanders should give their signal officers the earliest practical information regarding their future intention, should take into account any limiting factors in the provision of communications, and should then accord their signals officers a free hand in the ways and means of provision.’ He goes on to comment on the imperative of understanding the signal methods of Allies to ensure smooth communications. Those experienced in delivering communications and information systems on recent and current operations will know how true these words remain. When I look back over our heritage, it is a nothing less than a story of continually adapting to changes in strategy, weapon systems and technology, always with an eye to costs and the bottom line. We moved from shutter telegraphs, heliographs, Morse sounders and line communications to the adoption of wireless, multi-channel radio and satellite communications, with spin-offs into cryptography, electronic warfare and multinational cooperation along the way. I believe therefore that our ability to adapt to change is unquestioned. The key to the future will be in the way we develop our young soldiers and officers, education rather than mere training will be vital if we are to have an even chance of keeping up with the rapid change that notably characterises our key technologies. We must be demonstrably professionally competent